


We Push and Pull Like Magnets Do

by mylifeisloki, xo_stardust720



Category: Captain America (Movies), The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: 5+1 Things, F/M, Fluff and Smut, romanogers (briefly mentioned), winterwitch - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-11-19
Updated: 2018-11-19
Packaged: 2019-08-25 20:25:30
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 14,562
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16667728
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mylifeisloki/pseuds/mylifeisloki, https://archiveofourown.org/users/xo_stardust720/pseuds/xo_stardust720
Summary: He sits with his friends, looking as perfect and sexy as can be, and she feels almost stupid for the thoughts that roll through her head. In fact, Wanda might as well call it a night and go about her evening because regardless of how attractive the brunette is, they will not be going home together.[or, the 5 times Wanda and Bucky meet as strangers, and the 1 time they became something more.]





	We Push and Pull Like Magnets Do

**Author's Note:**

  * For [sleepygrimm](https://archiveofourown.org/users/sleepygrimm/gifts).



> A belated birthday present for Anna! We sincerely hope you love this fic as much as we enjoyed writing it :)

 

**One.**

When Wanda first sees him, she doesn’t know his name or why he is there. She only knows two things about him: the first is that he has the most beautiful smile; wide and charming and yet, there was a hint of mischievousness to go along with it. The second thing is that he has a body to die for and he has barely walked through the door before she is filled head to toe with desire.

It happens in a span of seconds, from the moment he takes off his coat that exposes the ripples and bumps of muscle up and down his arms to the way his shirt clings to his torso as he pulls out a chair and sits down. It’s instantaneous, the attraction that forms. She stops what she’s doing and just stares, watching as he greets his friends… The world could explode at any given moment and her eyes would still be glazed over in rapture -- all because this nameless man has an effect on Wanda too great to be lessened by definition. As far as she is concerned, there are no words to describe just how ridiculously alluring this man is.

He’s not her usual type either. Normally, she goes for the clean-cut, well-maintained classic look. This man has shoulder length hair that was half-tied up in a man-bun. There’s stubble covering the lower half of his face, the five o’clock shadow somehow enhancing his strong jawline instead of covering it like most facial hair would… and it makes her wonder what it would feel like against her neck, her skin, and in between her legs...

She feels the warmth begin to spread across her core and abruptly cuts off her thoughts before they can go any further. The point is that the man literally looks kind of like a beach bum and she shouldn’t find it so attractive, but she does.

This feeling is new to her, _foreign_ \- almost as foreign as New York City is to her still.

He sits with his friends, both of whom are just as good looking as the man before her, and she feels almost stupid for the thoughts that roll through her head. In fact, Wanda might as well call it a night and go about her evening because regardless of how attractive the brunette is, they will not be going home together. The blue-eyed handsome man is without a doubt _completely out of her league_.

“What are you staring at?”

Wanda startles, nearly dropping the glass she’s holding. She turns to see Natasha watching her, her head tilted to the side and with a curious expression. “N-nothing,” she mumbles under her breath, feeling the heat spread across her cheeks. Her fellow co-worker gives her a disbelieving look and then turns in the direction that Wanda had been staring at. Her expression clears and becomes one of understanding.

“Ah,” Natasha nods. “Which one is it?”

Denying it is futile, Wanda knows. She turns to put away the glass that she had been holding and reaches for another one to dry. The bar is fairly quiet for a Thursday evening, much to her disappointment. And there was no dissuading Natasha once the redhead wanted to know something and right now was the perfect time for her ‘interrogation’ since there were no customers to help out. “The brunette that just walked in.”

“Barnes,” Natasha says. And at Wanda’s questioning look, she clarifies further. “He goes by Bucky. He and his friends come to this bar regularly.”

Wanda blushes. “Does he now?”

“Mhmm,” Natasha hums. “I’d say they come here at least three times a week.”

Not knowing what to say, Wanda simply responds with, “Oh.”

“Good looking, isn’t he?” Natasha prods, her signature smirk evident on her face.

Wanda feels her face heat up even more and avoids eye contact.

“Aw, don’t let her get to you, Wanda.” Clint rounds the corner, carrying another tray of glasses and begins to put them away. “She takes perverse joy in watching people squirm. It amuses her. Nat, stop giving the newbie a hard time.”

The redhead shrugs and lets out a laugh. She smiles at her warmly, and Wanda instantly feels better, because as much as Natasha likes to give her a hard time, Wanda knows that it’s also done out of affection. She may have only known the redhead for a couple of weeks, but it was long enough for Wanda to know that Natasha doesn’t normally let people get close to her unless she deems it worthy. 

“Besides, you’re not the only one who finds one of those guys attractive,” Clint adds, giving Natasha a smug look. “I’m sure Nat wouldn’t say no if Steve Rogers were to ask her out on a date.”

“Really?” Wanda asks eagerly, relieved that the attention was no longer on her. “Which one is Steve Rogers?” 

“The blonde; Barnes’ friend,” Clint answers. “Rogers has been coming here a couple times a week for awhile now, and has yet to find the courage to ask Nat out. Poor guy. We’ve got bets on the two of them if you want to join in.”

“Is he shy?” Wanda glances at the group of guys and for the first time notices as Steve Rogers tries to casually glance over his shoulder to where they are standing. Natasha catches his eye and winks, smirking as she wipes the counter off. Steve blushes and gives her a shy smile before turning his attention back to his friends. It’s hard to miss the chemistry between the two now that Wanda is paying attention.

“Nah,” Clint shakes his head. “He’s completely fine talking with other people. Something about Nat just throws him off his game and gets him all tongue-tied. You really ought to put him out of his misery and make a move, Nat.”

“But it’s so much more fun this way,” Natasha shrugs. “Plus, it’s really cute when he gets all flustered.”

“And how long has this been going on?” Wanda asks.

“-Oh, for months now,” a new voice interrupts them. Wanda turns and her heart practically skips a beat when she sees _Bucky_ standing at the bar in front of her. He flashes her a grin, and she feels a thrill run down her spine. Up close, she sees that his eyes are blue and impossibly bright under the glare of the ceiling lights. “Hi, doll,” he says to her, his tone unmistakably flirtatious. “You new here?”

“She just started here two weeks ago,” Natasha is quick to jump in. “This is Wanda.”

“Bucky.” He reaches across the counter, extending his hand towards her. Wanda has no idea how she manages to shake his hand but she’s proud of herself for being able to keep her cool.

“Hello,” she smiles. “It’s nice to meet you.”

(Little does she know, this is only the beginning.)

  
**Two.**

Bucky first catches a glimpse of her as he’s entering the lobby of his apartment building. He doesn’t see her face as she slips into the elevator, but he _does_ notice her shapely legs peeking out from underneath a flowing, black skirt and it’s really too bad that the doors slide shut before he can catch another glance. He doesn’t think too much of it though, thoughts of the woman with the shapely legs fading quickly from his mind as he stops to pick up his mail. He chats with the doorman for a few minutes, says hello to Mrs. Summers and her poodle from 2B as they make their way out, and heads upstairs to his own apartment.

It’s the shouting and the pounding on the door that captures his attention the second time as he steps off the elevator on his floor. He recognizes the shapely legs, and stops to watch with amusement as the woman continues on. The guy that lives across the hall from Bucky in 4D recently moved in a little more than a month ago, but that didn’t stop him from bringing home a parade of women in that time. Bucky can’t blame the guy for playing the field but he had seen him with at least four different women over the past five weeks, and perhaps this woman that is currently shouting had finally figured out she is not the only one in the guy’s life.

“PIETRO! I KNOW YOU’RE IN THERE! OPEN THIS DOOR RIGHT NOW! PIETRO!!”

The woman continues banging on the door and it was a good thing that it was in the middle of the afternoon where most people were at work because otherwise someone would’ve probably called the cops for noise disturbance, Bucky concludes. 

“PIETRO! IT’S NO USE AVOIDING ME… YOU KNOW THAT I DON’T NEED A KEY TO OPEN THIS DOOR!”

Bucky moves forward from where he was standing when he sees the woman retrieve a bobby pin from her hair and bend down so that she was at eye level with the doorknob. Being angry and scorned is one thing, but _breaking and entering_? That’s a whole other level of crossing the line that Bucky can’t just stand by and let happen.

“You know, I’m sure your anger is justified, but if you stop what you’re doing right now, I’ll pretend that I didn’t see anything and I won’t call the cops.”

Immediately the girl straightens and whirls around. Two bright red spots appears on her cheeks as she regards Bucky with a horrified look, and recognition hits.

“Hey, you’re the new bartender that works at _Barton’s Bar and Grill_! Wanda, right?”

“Uhhh...y-yeah,” Wanda stutters. She fidgets nervously and Bucky is suddenly struck by how cute this girl is. Not that he hadn’t realized how attractive she was when they met at the bar, but here, in daylight; it was easy to see just how pretty she is. “I mean, I’m not a bartender but yeah, I work there.”

Why were all the cute ones a little crazy? It’s just his luck. “Right,” Bucky nods, and there’s an awkward silence between them. “So… why are you breaking and entering into 4D’s apartment?”

Forgetting her embarrassment almost immediately, Wanda scowls. “Pietro lives here and he’s about to be in for a world of hurt,” she turns and glares at the door, before facing him again. “What are you doing here?”

Bucky gestures towards his own apartment door. “I live in 4B.”

“Oh. _Oh._ Okay, I know this looks bad,” she nods. “I swear, I’m not a crazy person. Please don’t call the police.”

Bucky stares at Wanda, his eyes roving over her petite frame. “I won’t, but I have to say… is the guy really worth it? I mean, you could do so much better than him.”

Confusion flutters across her face. “Huh?”

“He seems like a pretty nice guy, not that I know him all that well... but I’ve seen him with other women and you gotta know that you deserve better…”

Wanda blinks. Then understanding dawns and she dissolves into giggles. “Wait… you think I’m here to kick Pietro’s ass because I feel betrayed he’s dating a bunch of different women?”

“Aren’t you?” It is Bucky’s turn to blink.

“No! I don’t have a boyfriend,” she laughs, and he can’t help but smile. Wanda’s laughter is infectious; all bright and happy. Bucky’s already feeling a lot lighter from just hearing it. “Pietro is my brother. My twin brother, actually. I’m totally here to kick his ass for another reason entirely.” 

It feels as if the world fades away and it takes a minute for the information to sink in. _She’s single_. He can’t quite explain it, but he’s suddenly feeling very thrilled at this new found revelation. “Oh, I see,” he grins. “Breaking and entering is still wrong, even if he is your brother.”

“Don’t worry,” a new voice interrupts them. Both Bucky and Wanda turn to see Pietro leaning against the wall, smirking at them. “I expected her to show up sooner or later.”

“You weren’t even home this whole time?!” Wanda snaps, outraged.

Pietro winces at Wanda’s tone. “Now calm down, little sister…”

“I’m only twelve minutes younger than you!”

Bucky slips his key into the doorknob of his own apartment door. “And this is my cue to leave.”

The twins hardly notices his exit, as Wanda is immediately yelling at him in a language that only her brother can understand and Pietro is holding his hands out in front of him as a sign of defense and looking sheepish.

Bucky shakes his head with amusement as he shuts the door behind him, grinning from ear to ear over the encounter.

 

**Three.  
**

Wanda stares in awe at the throngs of people wandering about as she entered _Barton’s Bar and Grill_. She’s been working here for more than two months now, and this is the first time she has seen this place as packed as it is. It’s certainly shaping up to be the wildest party she’s ever been to… not that she has been to many parties in her lifetime but she is pretty sure that _this one_ is by far one of her more memorable ones.

And to top it all off, she hasn’t even been officially invited to this shindig; as it is, she is just an innocent bystander. The alcohol looks to be flowing and just about everyone looks to be either very drunk, or well on their way to being intoxicated.

People are shouting praises at her as she walks by, giving her high-fives and whatnot. She smiles and nods, taking it all in stride as she makes her way towards the bar. _Barton’s Bar and Grill_ is filled with activity and Wanda was supposed to have had the night off, but was called into work due to them being short staffed. Clint rushes past her looking a little worse for wear, but Natasha looks seemingly unphased as Wanda joins her at the counter. “Hey,” Nat greets as she places two pitchers of beer and five glasses onto a tray. “Can you take this to table four?”

Wanda quickly makes her way over, expertly dodging the throngs of people along the way as she carefully balances the tray in her hands. Reaching table four, she finds five enthusiastic men smiling at her, and one already reaching out for the beer before she even has a chance to place it down onto the table.

“Hi doll,” Bucky grins. “I didn’t think you were working tonight.”

He looks ridiculously good, dressed casually in a simple black t-shirt and jeans with his long hair pulled back into its usual bun.

“Got called in,” Wanda replies, smiling shyly. “It’s unusually busy tonight.”

“That’s because it’s MY BIRTHDAY!” A voice cuts in and Wanda nearly topples over as an arm wraps around her shoulders in a chummy gesture. She looks over and the guy standing next to her gives her this flirty little wink but it hardly raises any red flags. This guy is as friendly as they come and Wanda feels instantly comfortable - and that’s not a feeling she can say she feels with just anybody. “How are you doing sweetheart? Are you gonna join us?”

“I’m working,” she laughs.

“Aw, you can take a break, can’t you?” The man grins. “It’s my birthday! Grab a beer and enjoy yourself.”

“Your birthday is the reason Wanda has to work tonight, Wilson,” Natasha suddenly appears as she places two large plates of chicken wings onto the table. “This place is a zoo.”

“All the more reason for you to join us! And you should join us too, Natasha. Grab a chair!”

“Get your grubby hands off her, Sam,” Bucky playfully shoves at his friend from Wanda’s other side and it’s ridiculous just how much her heart leaps at the mischievous grin on his face. “Sorry you got called in on your night off because of us.”

Wanda shrugs, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear. “I don’t mind, I could always use the money anyways.”

“Then we’ll make sure we tip extra!” Sam cheers.

“See that you boys do,” Natasha winks at Steve, who blushes as he sits and nurses his beer. Natasha turns and disappears and Wanda awkwardly goes to follow, but not before a hand grasps her elbow. She looks over and Bucky smiles at her.

“Come join us when you get a chance?”

She can feel her own face heating up and gives him a shy glance. _It should be a crime to look that good,_ she thinks as she finds herself nodding. “I’ll try.”

Much to her disappointment, she doesn’t actually get a chance to hang out with him and his friends; she ends up being incredibly busy as the night unfolds and she helps to fill order after order as people came and went.

(But it sure made her feel all tingly each time she looks over and catches him glancing her way for the rest of the night, and her smile gets wider each time their eyes connect.)

After last call, Wanda happily takes up the task of wiping down the tables and making sure all the dishes are in the kitchen. Natasha’s cleaning up the bar and wiping glasses while Clint sits in a booth and counts the money for the night. It’s quiet, especially compared to the noise they had been dealing with all evening long. When the bell above the door jingles to announce another guest, Clint automatically yells out that they’re closed-- but the guest doesn’t leave.

“Yeah, I just wanted to, uh…” Bucky looks a little sheepish, but he turns his gaze to a startled Wanda and smiles widely anyway. “I wanted to see if maybe I could walk you home.”

Wanda’s eyes widen and she quickly looks to Natasha to silently plead that she be released from her nightly duties to take advantage of his offer. Natasha just rolls her eyes and gestures to Bucky. “Go ahead, be careful--” She points at Bucky. “And you behave.”

Wanda’s already bouncing off to get her bag and her jacket, so she doesn’t see Natasha’s warning. All she does is come back out with a big smile and join Bucky near the door so they can head out. He holds the door open for her and she can’t help but giggle a little bit because of it. She can’t remember the last time she’d been out with a man who was so polite, possibly because she _hadn’t_ been out with a man that polite. In fact, she hadn’t been out with much of anyone, to be frank. She hadn’t liked the boys back home, not that she’d had time to get to know them in between scrounging for food and moving from safe place to safe place, and moving to New York had been such a big adjustment that she just hadn’t found the time… unlike Pietro, who had no such issues.

Outside, she buttons up her coat and shoves her hands in her pockets to protect them from the cold even though she’d much rather have Bucky’s hand to keep one of them warm.

“So,” he starts eventually. “That’s some accent you have. Where are you from?”

“Sokovia,” she says easily. “Pietro and I came here last year.”

Bucky nods quickly, like he was hanging on her every word. “I like it,” he adds. “The accent, I mean.”

Wanda blushes a little bit, but the cold makes for a good cover. “Were you born here?”

“Yeah, born and raised. Me and Steve grew up in Brooklyn.”

“That must have been nice, growing up here,” she observes. New York is hectic in its own way, but Sokovia was very different. “My home was never so calm, I don’t think.”

“Right, yeah, I’ve-- heard stories about Sokovia. Thought I might be stationed there at some point, but that never happened. Is that what made you come here? The war?”

“Pietro and I lost our parents, actually. We tried to survive on our own, but there is violence everywhere... “ Wanda shakes her head a little bit. “We decided to come here to make a better life for ourselves. Pietro works, I help when I can between my classes. Sometimes, though, it is hard not to feel guilty that we are alive and safe and free when the rest of our people are not.”

Bucky nods mutely. “It says a lot about you that you’d even think that,” he muses. “You’re a good person, Wanda.”

Squashing down the urge to squeal as he said her name, Wanda just smiles a little and ducks her head shyly as he grins and leads her towards the park. If they walk through, her apartment is just a couple of minutes away, but she doesn't want this to end. She likes talking to him.

“S-So, what do you think we can do to get Steve to ask Natasha out?”

Bucky throws his head back and laughs out loud. “You know, Steve’s never been the shy type. I mean, the guy got his ass handed to him more times than I can count, but Nat just makes him all kinds of nervous, I guess.” He shrugs a little. “Maybe we should set them up on blind dates--”

“Natasha would never.”

“Alright, neither would Steve. But see! They’re perfect and he’s an idiot and she just likes teasing him. I told him before, I said, ‘Steve, you’ve gotta get your head outta your ass and just fuckin’ ask her out. She’ll prolly say yes, so what the fuck’s the problem, ya know?”

Wanda blinks as Bucky goes on and on until he stops and stares back at her. “What?”

“Nothing, you just-- You have an accent too.”

Standing there underneath the soft glow of the streetlamp nearby, Wanda could still see the way his eyes crinkled when he smiled and the way his eyes kind of sparkled and--

Her eyes widen again as Bucky leans down for a quick kiss. His lips are impossibly soft and she nearly follows him when he pulls back, his hands in his pockets as he rocks back and forth from the balls of his feet to his heels.

“Shit, I’m sorry--” He scratches at the back of his neck and looked up to meet her gaze while Wanda tries to gather herself and resist the urge to wrap her arms around his neck to ask for another. “I dunno where that came from. I promise I didn’t lure you to an isolated park for that.”

Wanda lets out an unexpected bark of laughter. Even though she’s still blushing and definitely overwhelmed by the opportunity presented to her here, she’s also really amused by the idea that Bucky, who looks like a sad, overgrown puppy, would ever lure anyone into a park to do them ‘harm’.

He looks dismayed and pouts at her. “You don’t gotta laugh at me, doll…”

But Wanda, who can’t remember ever having stepped up and taken charge of a boy in this context in her whole life, moves closer and looks up at Bucky with an expectant smile, her gaze dropping briefly to his lips before she turns her big, green eyes up at him again.

He gets the point and soon enough, Wanda gets her wish as his lips meet hers a second time. From there, it’s almost too natural for her to wrap her arms around his shoulders and lean in for more. It’s even _more_ natural to feel his arms around her waist tucking her in tight against him, his stubble brushing against her smooth skin, his chest warm and solid beneath his jacket…

When they break apart again, Bucky leads Wanda to a bench nearby and in a daze, she finds herself with her legs draped over his lap while he kisses her again. This time, his hands are cupping the sides of her face and his fingers are working slowly into her hair… Wanda holds onto the front of his shirt like it’s a lifeline, pulling him in impossibly closer with each breath she steals between kisses and shivering lightly as his hand drops to rest on her thigh between the hem of her skirt and the top of her socks.

At some point, they break apart and Bucky rests his forehead against hers as he smiles. “How far away from here did you say you lived?”

 

Wanda has been with two guys. The first was when she was sixteen and thought she was in love; it wasn’t incredibly exciting and ended very quickly with a sticky mess and this _boy_ grunting on top of her. The second time was just after her parents died. It was the single act of rebellion she could remember and she didn’t think it was worth it in the end, but at least she’d gotten a little physical pleasure out of that one.

Basically, her lack of experience meant that she is woefully unprepared for the sheer magnitude of passion coming at her once they’re in her apartment complex. Bucky’s got her against the wall outside her door while she fumbles with her keys and all she can think about through the haze of dizziness is that his cologne smells really good. All that goes right out the window when she finally, _finally_ manages to get the door open and they stumble inside as Bucky tears his jacket off and Wanda awkwardly reaches up to pull the tie out of his hair. If she’s going to do this, she’s going to do it her way.

Her jacket follows and they’re heading for the bedroom in the blink of an eye, their shoes left somewhere in the hallway. In the back of her head, Wanda idly thinks about how little of this her bed has seen (i.e., none) and vows to make it a night she’ll remember. But even with that said, she’s just a little hesitant to follow Bucky’s example when he pulls his shirt over his head. The man is perfection personified if his abs are anything at all to go by and even with the thick scars running down the length of his left arm, she wants to have a couple of hours to just touch him. Maybe even a couple of hours to just look at him, she’s not that picky.

Thankfully, all that is pushed far to the side when Bucky lands on the bed and pulls her down with him, situating her on top of all his goodness. His hands wander while she’s distracted by another kiss, her hair creating a veil around the two of them, and land squarely on her ass. She squeaks a little bit in surprise and Bucky chuckles beneath her, the warm sound vibrating up into her chest as well. It’s just _intoxicating_ , really. She wants to make him laugh more often.

Even more than that at the moment, she wants him on top of her. Rolling over isn’t easy, but he helps and they manage, and all of a sudden Wanda is just caged in by two beefy arms and so much muscle, she doesn’t know what to touch first. She decides the best thing she can do is thread her fingers into his hair and kiss him again, but blushes to the roots of her hair when she feels her rings snag a little bit.

“Oh, this is sexy,” Bucky laughs as he ducks his head, presses his nose against her breastbone, and lets Wanda work them out of his hair.

“Sorry,” she says quickly. “I don’t do this a lot.”

“Get rings stuck in people’s hair, or--?”

They laugh together as Wanda finishes her task and quickly removes the six rings she’s wearing, noisily dropping them onto her bedside table so they can continue. This time, Bucky’s hands slide into her hair while his mouth drops to the swell of her breasts and Wanda lets out a soft moan while she takes that opportunity to touch his thick, powerful shoulders. He could probably break her in half if he wanted to, but his kisses are so _gentle_ …

He’s a complex man, she realizes; much more complex than she’d initially given him credit for.

But her base instincts are coming out with ease as Bucky begins undoing the laces of her dress, eventually pushing the material aside and leaning down to lavish her skin with wet kisses that make her tingle in places she hardly recognizes. Wanda’s back arches of its own volition and she unconsciously digs her nails into Bucky’s shoulders while he continues moving down her stomach to the band of her panties. She’s already panting, but there’s something so unbelievably hot about looking down to find him grinning up at her from between her legs.

Not for the first time, she sees him wet his lips and a sly, lazy, _troublemaker_ smile slides onto his face. Deep down, she knows what’s coming, but it’s still a surprise to watch him peel her panties off even as she lifts her hips to let it happen. It’s still a surprise to feel his breath on her inner thighs and his hands pushing her legs apart. And it’s more than a surprise to feel the first time his tongue touches her. Wanda doesn’t recognize the sound of her own voice as she moans for him and lifts her arms to hold onto the headboard behind her.

The only way she’d be able to describe it later would be to say that Bucky _destroyed_ all semblance of shame or shyness or hesitation she might have had. She couldn’t hold on to all that while he had his head buried between her legs, let alone when he added two fingers to the mix. And while her face was flushed and she tried putting a hand over her mouth to quiet the pleading moans that left her, she ultimately gave in to the clawing pleasure and shook with the force of it as he pulled her very first real orgasm from her.

In the aftermath, Wanda can only pant and stare up at the ceiling. Bucky looks unbelievably smug as he crawls up and lands beside her, but the lingering wetness on his lips and clinging to his stubble has Wanda covering her face in embarrassment.

“What’s wrong?” He laughs and tries to pry her hands away, only succeeding after he pokes her side and tickles under her ribs. “Hey, lemme see your face!”

“No, I made all those sounds, I can’t look at you right now, do _not_ look at me!”

Laughing again, Bucky drops his hands and tilts his head to the side. She can see him through her fingers and he looks so handsome in that moment it should probably be considered criminal. “But I want to look at you!” He argues; she can hear him trying not to laugh out loud. “Are you gonna let me cover my face after I come?”

Wanda groans in humiliation as she slowly pulls her hands away from her face. “That’s different,” she pouts.

“Oh, yeah? How’s that?”

Instead of answering honestly, which would probably involve a lot of stammering as she tries to explain that he’s literally a sexy angel who couldn’t look bad if he tried, Wanda gets up her courage and rests her hand on his chest. “Why don’t we find out?”

Determined, she lets her hand wander down and tries to undo his belt with one hand. It doesn’t work, obviously, and she blushes as she uses both to get it open and pull it away in favor of getting his jeans undone as well. Even though she braces herself for what’s coming, the sight of him with his pants around his thighs and his cock arching up towards his stomach is jarring and wonderful at the same time. In the back of her mind, she knows that she had something to do with making all that happen and it stocks her confidence if nothing else.

That is, until she’s seated on top of him with her bra thrown to the side, her long hair spilling over her shoulders, and Bucky just ghosts his fingers over her thighs and looks at her. “God, you’re beautiful, you know that?”

Wanda’s cheeks get hotter than she can handle and she ducks her head shyly. Just leave it to him to make her feel like a giddy little school-girl when she’s got his cock between her legs and the taste of her still on his tongue. Shaking her head, she leans over to her bedside table and rummages around until she finds the single condom she has on hand-- better safe than sorry, she’s always said. She replaces it every now and then to make sure it’s a good one, should she finally have some company. And it’s a good thing, because she’d be terribly disappointed if this evening ended any other way.

She fumbles getting the condom onto him and Bucky smiles as he helps her out, thankfully not making a comment about it. Wanda appreciates that immensely, but not nearly as much as she appreciates the way his head falls back as she lowers herself onto him. His forehead creases and she watches as he parts his lips in a quiet moan as she settles down. _He’s_ beautiful- she idly wonders if he knows that or if he’s one of those guys who only wants to be called ‘handsome’. Then she realizes that she doesn’t technically know him well enough to be sleeping with him, but it feels so different from that one mistake she’d made ages ago that she can’t imagine questioning her instincts here. It feels right, like she’s meant to be here with him in this moment. She slides her hands onto his chest to balance herself and rocks her hips a little bit to test the waters.

His fingers dig into the meat of her thighs immediately and she can feel his thighs tense up underneath her. The next time she moves, the answering thrust of his hips jostles her enough to move her hair away from her breasts. It’s better than she’s ever imagined it and better than anything she’s ever experienced in bed; Wanda gets it now, why some of her girlfriends love being with a man so much. There’s something about the warmth of another body, but it’s more than that. It’s also feeling like you have power over someone while they have their own power over you.

When she finds the right rhythm, she can see it written all over Bucky’s face. His eyes are open, but he’s fighting against letting them close, she can tell. He’s also pressing his hips up against her in a vain effort to get a little more friction between them and his hands are reaching out for all they can, brushing her hair aside to touch her breasts and the curve of her waist and the swell of her hips. It isn’t long until he’s flipping them over and hiking her leg up around his waist while he resumes the rhythm on his end. Driving into her hard enough to make her headboard hit the wall and thoroughly challenge the durability of the bed frame itself, Bucky’s hair falls into his eyes as he leans down to kiss her again. He’s a force to be reckoned with, she tells herself.

She doesn’t grab his hair again-- No, Wanda lets her hands travel down instead and grips his ass tight enough to pull him into her even deeper, like she’s desperate to have every inch inside her. Bucky groans into her shoulder and his hips start to swivel a little bit. It’s something new and Wanda arches her back in response, seeking out more of that feeling as she locks her ankles around his waist and abandons his ass for the muscles on his back, then eventually his biceps instead.

When he comes, it’s with a couple of staccato thrusts that leave her gasping for air as she tries to see his face while it happens. Bucky looks positively erotic in that moment, she decides- and she wants to see it again, up close and personal, several more times in the future. His lips are pink and wet, his mouth is slack, and he pulls off this lazy, boyish smile that makes her melt even as he rolls off her and disposes of the condom in her trash can nearby.

In Wanda’s head, it gets awkward. No one’s saying anything and she doesn’t know what to do now other than fish around on the floor for a shirt and pull it on to cover herself up. She grabs panties too, and she feels grateful that Bucky never took her socks off so she’s pretty covered up that way. When she sits down on the edge of the bed again, Bucky’s hand is there on her back.

“I’d ask if you were leaving, but this is your place,” he teases cautiously. “You want me to go?”

Wanda does not, but she’s never slept with someone all night either. She decides not to tell him that and just allows Bucky to pull her back to bed, under the covers, and into his chest. Being naked doesn’t seem to be a big thing for him and she doesn’t complain, especially given how warm he is. She’s asleep in minutes, long before she can start to question what she’s just done or the implications of it.

The next morning, she wakes up to her cat nuzzling into her neck and no sign of Bucky. Frowning to herself, Wanda leaves her bedroom and finds a note sitting neatly on the table:

_Great time last night. Sorry to leave so early, but I’ve got an appointment._

_See you around, I hope._

_Bucky_

 

Um. What?

 

  
**Four.**

“And so we meet again.”

Wanda glances up from the textbook that was currently on the table in front of her with a frown, clearly dismayed that her concentration has been broken... except for the fact that her expression shifts into one of cheerfulness and a wide smile appears on her face when she sees him standing there in front of her. Relief floods his system immediately because she’s obviously not mad at him for bailing that night they’d spent together. It had been longer than was socially acceptable, he understands that, so it’s nice that she’s giving him the time of day. He gestures to the empty chair across from her.  “Mind if I join you?”

“Of course I don’t mind,” she replies with a smile, and his heart flips at the sight of it. She shoves a couple of books that she has lying around into her backpack, making space on the table for him. He takes off his jacket and hangs it onto the chair that’s sitting across from her, then steps up to the counter to place his order. He comes back with two steaming cups of coffee and a couple of muffins. And he can’t quite stomp the feeling of delight that bubbles up within him as he passes over one of the cups to her and sees her smile widen even more as she holds to the cup to her lips and breathes in the heavenly aroma. “Thank you.”

“You’re welcome,” he says as he watches her take a sip. Bucky can’t quite pin down what his feelings for Wanda are. He knows he always hopes to see her working whenever he meets up with Steve and Sam for their weekly get-togethers at _Barton’s Bar and Grill_ and he knows the night they spent together was fucking fantastic. Despite all that, he doesn’t quite know what to consider them. They were obviously _friendly_ , but he didn’t know if he could call them _friends_. He didn’t even know that much about her! And yet, they weren’t acquaintances either.

However, if Bucky is being honest with himself, he’s been wanting to ask Wanda out since they met and he isn’t sure why he slept with her before he actually did. If Steve’s to be believed, he’s just nervous about being in a ‘real’ relationship, whatever that means. But in Bucky’s mind, it’s all about timing. They’re having fun just the way they are, right? Why ruin that?

“So what are you working on?” He glances down at her books with interest. Maybe if he gets to know her a little better, he’ll know what to do next.

“Abnormal psychology focusing on substance abuse disorders and personality disorders,” she answers easily, almost like it’s not a difficult subject at all. Wanda shrugs it off like it’s nothing.

Bucky gulps and raises his eyebrows. He had been a good student back in the day, but he’s never studied anything like that. School stopped after 12th and he’d gone into the army after that. He supposes that gave him knowledge of a very different kind. “That’s impressive,” he chuckles as he sits back a little. “What made you want to study psychology?”

Wanda traces the tip of her finger around the rim of her cup and smiles to herself before looking up at him. “You’ll laugh at me.”

Bucky puts a hand on his chest and gasps. “I would never.”

Put slightly at ease, she leans forward like she’s telling him a big secret. “When I was a child, my mother used to tell me that I had a gift for reading people,” she explains. “She used to say I was ‘sensitive’ to the feelings of others; empathetic, that sort of thing. But when I got older, I realized I wanted to understand not just how others were feeling, but why they were feeling that way.”

She trails off and sits back, giving him an unsure look. “I promise, I’m not reading anyone’s aura. People seem to think I’m some kind of fortune teller…”

Bucky briefly considers the chains she’s wearing around her neck and realizes that yes, she probably could pass for a fortune teller for Halloween. “So, you have _no_ experience with tarot cards? Palm reading? Tea leaves?”

Wanda shrugs and gives him a sly smile. “Well. I didn’t say that.”

“I knew it,” he teases. “Can you read my palm?” He extends his hand towards her and she takes it right away, leaving him to observe how small and delicate hers are compared to his own; military training will do that to you.

Wanda looks over his hand and traces her fingers over a few of the lines. “You’ve got a strong life line,” she says. “It’s not straight, though. You’ll have or have had struggles there… but you have a decent head line too.”

“Well, I’ve been told my ‘head’ is more than decent, but you would know.”

She’s so pretty when she blushes, but this time she also smiles and shakes her head at his stupid pun. Bucky’s pretty sure he looks like an idiot smiling back.

“Your love line is solid.” She shows him where it is and smiles as he traces along with his other hand, intentionally brushing their fingers together. “You’re a lover, not a fighter.”

“Now you’re just giving me one liners,” he accuses lightly.

This is the best moment to ask her out, he told himself. Wanda’s still holding onto his hand and biting her lip, she’s definitely into him, she’ll probably say yes. And he has nothing to lose, really. Bucky can’t remember the last time he’s liked someone as much as he likes her; Steve would be so proud of him, so he should just go ahead and ask her…

“Oh, shoot, I’ve got to go,” she announces as she pulls her hand away, her attention shifting to the clock on the wall behind him.

Bucky frowns as she starts packing up the rest of her things. “So soon?”

“I’ve got class in fifteen minutes and my professor really doesn’t tolerate lateness.” She’s not lying about it; there’s too much rushing going on for her to be making up an excuse just to get away from him. “Um, see you around?”

Before he can answer her, Wanda’s out the door with her bag over her shoulder and the coffee he’d bought her still in hand. ‘See you around’?

Uh oh. Something tells Bucky those words mean more than they seem.

 

**Five.**

“-so then I added a pinch of paprika because the recipe said to, and it’s just confusing. A pinch! What does that even mean?”

Wanda fakes a laugh and resists the urge to not roll her eyes as the blonde man in front of her tries his hardest to engage her in conversation. It’s been a long week of studying for finals and the stress of exams looming over her head is beginning to take its toll so her patience is starting to wear thin. He’s nice enough, and he’s handsome in an older sort of way, but he’s just not the one she really wants to be talking to.

Except that it seems Bucky isn’t actually going to ask her out. She wants to believe that their night together will inspire him to take the next step, but she hasn’t heard from him again and they haven’t bumped into one another since the coffee shop. She just hopes that if he _is_ going to ask her out, he does it soon. It’s beginning to feel a little insulting.

But she would be lying if she said that she isn’t at the bar _on her night off_ to see if Bucky comes in with his friends as usual. Natasha knows it and she’s keeping an eye on Wanda from behind the bar all while denying that she’s also looking to see whether or not Steve comes in with his friend. In any case, both women notice when the group files in and finds their seats in their usual section.

Wanda catches Bucky gaze and gives him a little smile, but she doesn’t make any effort to go over. If he wants to talk to her, then he can make the move.

The man in front of her, who has introduced himself as Viz, makes another awkward sort of joke that pulls a polite laugh from her. Wanda isn’t interested, but hell if she knows how to tactfully remove herself from the situation. She goes with it hoping that Bucky will make an effort to pull her away.

He doesn’t.

And by the time she silently pleads with Natasha for a way out, Wanda’s feeling rejected and confused.

“I don’t get it,” she laments in the back room while Clint covers for Natasha. “We were doing really well, and then that night, and he seemed so interested…”

Natasha’s not one to play games, so she doesn’t appreciate the lack of communication between Bucky and Wanda. “Just go ask him out,” she suggests, but the look Wanda gives her tells her it’s not going to happen. “Okay, maybe just-- talk to him? Maybe he’s shy. Maybe he’s not interested in ‘dating’?”

Wanda pouts. “It sure doesn’t feel that way when he’s talking to me.”

The best thing she can do at this point is move past it. Natasha’s advice is either man up and ask him out or just see what happens; Wanda decides that the latter is the best way to go.

She’s still at the bar, thankfully without Viz still talking to her, when Bucky comes up to get another round for the guys. She turns her head to him and smiles politely again, but Bucky doesn’t seem as warm as usual.

Okay, weird. “Hey, Bucky,” she tries. “Haven’t seen you in a while.”

Bucky glances her way, but just for a second. “Doesn’t seem like you’re without company.”

Wanda frowns. “What’s that supposed to mean?”

“Nothing.” He shakes his head.

“It doesn’t _sound_ like nothing,” she mumbles as she takes another sip of her drink.

Bucky huffs. “Yeah, well--”

He’s cut off as Viz slides up to Wanda at the bar and gives her a wide smile. Wanda’s caught in the middle, but she definitely sees Bucky grumble something to himself, grab their new pitcher of beer, and walk away still shaking his head.

“So, I was wondering if you’d be interested in--”

Wanda’s not just annoyed; she’s angry. How dare he? Setting her drink down with a bang, she stands up and pushes her hair back. “Excuse me,” she says without looking back at him before marching over to the table with Steve, Bucky, and Sam sitting around it.

Slamming her hands onto the table, she meets Bucky’s gaze. “Just who do you think you are?”

All three men stare back at her. “I don’t know what you mean--”

Wanda holds a hand up to Steve, then points to Bucky. “I mean him,” she clarifies. “Who do you think you are?”

Bucky presses his lips together and folds his arms over his chest like he’s the one in the right here.

“If you want to be a coward, then be a coward. But don’t think I’m going to-- to wait forever!” Her cheeks are burning; Wanda’s never done anything like this before and she isn’t particularly enjoying it. “It’s been weeks since--” She shuts herself up before she announces to the entire world that she slept with someone she barely knows. “You can’t just _be_ like that and then--” She lets out a frustrated sound and points at him again. “Grow up, Bucky Barnes,” she says boldly.

With that, with Natasha practically applauding her from the bar and people staring at her as she passes by, Wanda marches herself out of the bar and immediately heads for the safety of her apartment. Bucky can just-- he can just-- go to hell!

 

 

**\+ One. _How they became something more..._  
**

The fact that Bucky gets completely shit-faced the same night Wanda tells him to grow up is _completely_ coincidental, thank you very much. He’s had a rough week, that’s all. He needs to relax. It has nothing to do with the fact that he feels completely inadequate. And the fact that he spends his entire therapy session the next week mumbling about how he can’t handle a relationship and what does she even know about him anyway also has nothing to do with any ‘feelings’ he’s got for her.

“Who are you even kidding?” Steve accuses over their usual lunch after his appointment. “Seriously? You’ve talked about her like every day since you met the girl. For God’s sake, just end the torture and ask her out.”

Bucky grunts into his oatmeal. “It’s not like she’s gonna say yes,” he mumbles. “And who the fuck are you to talk, anyway? Tell me, how is _not_ asking Romanoff out working for you?”

Steve shrugs nonchalantly, though two bright spots appear on his cheeks and he avoids Bucky’s gaze. He’s hiding something, Bucky can feel it in his bones.

Bucky stares. “What is it?”

“N-nothing,” he stammers. “I’m just saying that it’s not like you to be so… shy.”

“I’m not _shy_ , I’m just not _sure.”_

Steve doesn’t believe him; Bucky doesn’t even believe himself, but Steve’s being suspicious too, so they both drop it. It’s got nothing to do with being sure or not; he just doesn’t know if he can handle an actual relationship given all his issues right now. It’s kind of like he never really returned from the army and maybe she’s worth more than just settling for him because they get along.

Three weeks of Bucky moping around and coming up with every excuse in the book to skip their meetups at the bar pass in a heartbeat. He wants to see her and they all know it, but he doesn’t know what to say and he’d rather avoid the situation than deal with it. That’s something else they all know. In the back of his head, he knows he fucked up, but apologizing seems like a terrible idea, mainly because it requires way too much vulnerability.

Bucky’s therapist would have a field day with that thought.

In any case, Steve wants to meet up for lunch somewhere downtown, so Bucky hops on the train and gets going just so he has something to do. The place Steve has directed him to is… surprisingly nice. Usually they go for the greasy spoon diners or hole in the wall places no one’s heard of, but this? This is a legit restaurant and Bucky feels vaguely underdressed for the whole thing. Ah, well. He marches in anyway and stuffs his hands in his pockets as he looks around for Steve.

The fucking traitor.

Bucky stomps over, pulls out the chair across from Steve, and slumps into it as he gives both his friend and Natasha a glare. “Why do I feel like I just walked into a trap?”

“What would give you that idea?” Natasha asks. She’s all sweet about it, which means he’s definitely fucked.

“Seriously, what’s with the place? Did she do this to you?” He cocks his head at Natasha, but directs his question to Steve.

Natasha arches an eyebrow. “Excuse you,” she deadpans. “My taste is impeccable, thank you very much.” She gives him an appraising onceover. “The least you could’ve done was make an effort, Barnes. Shower recently?”

“Fuck you,” Bucky grumbles, grabbing a menu and opening it to read over the list items they served.

Natasha smirks. “No, that’s Steve’s job.”

Steve, who had been taking a sip of water, immediately chokes and begins coughing. His face burning red as Natasha reaches over and lightly pats him on the back. “ _Nat!”_

“What?” She asks innocently. “You didn’t enjoy it?”

“I- that’s- I mean,” Steve sputters. “This is not what we came here to discuss today!”

Bucky looks back and forth between the two and grins. “Steve, you finally asked her out! It’s about time!”

Natasha snorted. “Are you kidding? He still _hasn’t_ asked me out. But if I waited any longer, I would be old and gray —and then Steve and I wouldn’t have had any _fun_.” She winks at the blonde. Steve ducks his head.

Bucky rolls his eyes. “You guys are sickening. I’m about to eat here. Where’s the waiter…?” He starts looking around, but Steve stops him and averts his gaze again. “What’s a guy gotta do to get a meal out of this?”

“Not yet,” Natasha said patiently.

Before Bucky could ask why, Steve and Natasha both look past him towards the door and he turns to see Wanda looking just as shocked as he is. He turns back and glares at his ‘friends’ while Wanda waltzes over and sits down beside him like there’s nothing wrong with the situation. Seriously? This is why they’d dragged him out to this place?

“Hey, everyone,” Wanda greets as she grabs a menu. “What are we having?”

Bucky feels his heart drop. There’s definitely no trace of any of the anger he feels. Other than her initial discomfort, Wanda is as cool as a cucumber.

“I-- was thinking a steak,” Steve answers slowly. Wanda’s demeanor has caught him off guard as well and now he’s just worried that they’ve made a mistake in inviting the two of them to this mess. Natasha doesn’t seem nearly as worried and not for the first time, he wishes they had some means of silent communication so he could know what she’s thinking.

Wanda nods in thought as she looks over the menu. “What about you, Nat?”

“The salmon sounds good,” she says casually; Bucky and Steve both eye her with varying degrees of mild hatred and confusion, respectively. “But dessert looks even better.”

“I’m definitely getting dessert,” Wanda mumbles. She glances between Natasha and Steve and tilts her head. "I see you took your own advice."

The redhead grins, glancing over at Steve with an expression that could only be described as affectionate. "I was inspired to take action. If you want something done, you gotta do it yourself, right?"

Wanda hums.

Bucky isn’t sure what to do, honestly. He had assumed that Wanda would be as uncomfortable as he is, but she seems fine. Maybe… she’s over him? Maybe she’s already moved on. He doesn’t know her all that well; maybe she’s just one of those people who doesn’t get attached very easily? Shit, he definitely made a mistake.

Still trying to figure out how to get out of this situation with the least amount of effort and embarrassment, he stays quiet other than ordering his seafood pasta. He even stays quiet as Natasha begins asking Wanda about her classes and so on. He pretty much relegates himself to glaring at Steve, who avoids his gaze, and stuffing bread into his mouth as fast as he can without actually making a scene.

“You should write a paper on Bucky,” Natasha teases lightly. “I bet you could get some good stuff.”

Bucky looks up and frowns. “Seriously? You think I’m a candidate for an abnormal psych paper?”

Natasha shrugs. “Maybe?”

Wanda waves off the idea. “Actually, I’d have to speak to someone with confirmed diagnoses, not diagnose them myself. And having the emotions of a brick wall doesn’t count.”

Without much of a pause, Wanda goes right back to talking about her classes and Natasha laughs as she recounts anecdotes from this professor or that classmate. In fact, it might as well have been just Natasha and Wanda sharing this meal. Bucky stews beside her like he isn’t the one who didn’t step up and just ask her out instead of getting all kinds of jealous. The meal doesn’t go nearly fast enough to distract Bucky from the reality of his situation or the flowery scent he catches whiffs of every time Wanda brushes her hair back from her face.

When it’s all over, he signals for the check before Steve has swallowed the last bite of his dessert and pays the whole damn thing so he can get out of there as fast as possible. It’s not that he’s angry, really; he’s _intimidated_.

She was supposed to be younger than him! She _is_ younger than him. Fragile, even! Inexperienced!

 

What the fuck is going on?

 

+++

 

These days, the kind of day she has can usually be determined by the way her final exams go.

The doorman to Pietro’s apartment building gives her a strange look as she makes her way into the lobby but she’s been here back and forth enough times that he recognizes her and doesn’t question her presence. Wanda is certain she looks terrible. She’s hardly been sleeping, too busy worrying about her exams and studying to bother with her appearance other than throwing her hair up into a messy bun and wearing nothing but baggy, comfortable clothing.

God, these days she _lives_ in her sweatpants.

University is harder than she anticipated and perhaps she had taken on more than she should have, but Wanda can’t afford to fuck up — she and Pietro have worked too hard to escape the madness that was their past and her education is the key to a brighter future. She’s still got two more finals to go and she has no idea how she’s going to learn all she has to know in time.

She moves in a daze and doesn’t actually realize that she’s forgotten the key to her brother’s apartment until she’s fumbling around in her bag and comes up empty handed. She knocks impatiently and waits for her brother to answer the door before she remembers that Pietro is at work and she just _can’t_ deal with the lock right now. It kind of hits her all at once — the stress, her exhaustion, the way things in her life just seem to be going so _wrong_ at every turn… All the emotions she has been suppressing come tumbling out and she just bursts into tears. She slumps against the door and just slides down until her head is resting against her knees and _sobs_ uncontrollably _._

Yeah, today has been a _bad_ day.

She’s so caught up in her misery that she doesn’t notice the elevator ding echoing through the hallway and footsteps walking towards her until a familiar voice calls out her name. “Wanda?”

Great, just fucking great.

Immediately, her head snaps up and her eyes narrow when she confirms that it is indeed Bucky walking down the hallway towards her. _Fuck_ , she really should’ve broken the lock to Pietro’s place instead of just sitting here where anyone could see her. But hey, this is just part of being an adult. Dealing with people she doesn’t want to deal with might as well be something she gets used to now because once she’s got her degree, she’ll be working with _a lot_ of people.

Trying her best to look unaffected by life itself, Wanda meets Bucky’s gaze and sniffles a little bit. “I’m fine,” she blurts out. Not that he cares. “Just having a bad day.”

“Oh.” Bucky glances at his door like he’s ready to run, but ultimately looks back down at her, sighs, and slowly moves to sit down on the floor beside her. Wanda resists the urge to tell him that she doesn’t need his stupid sympathy mostly because she really needs a hug from someone right now and she can’t be mad and miserable at the same time; she’s too tired. He’s sitting close enough that she can feel his body heat radiating off of him and it isn’t fair that he smells so good. “Do you want to talk about it?”

“Not really,” she mumbles. “I’ll be fine. I’m just gonna wait for Pietro to get home.”

“I’m no psych expert,” he glances at her, his tone of voice is cautious. “But you’re not fine. You wanna come over? I have a comfortable couch… and I have ice cream. Girls like that when they’re upset, right?”

Wanda bites her lip, debating on whether it would be a good idea to hang out at Bucky’s apartment or not. Even though she would have no problems breaking into her brother’s place, the idea of spending a few hours alone while waiting for him to come home certainly doesn’t appeal to her. The last couple of weeks, she’s been practically alone with nothing but her textbooks for company and she is sick of it. 

“C’mon,” he tries again, lightly nudging her shoulder. “Come inside.”

“Alright,” she agrees with a sigh. “But not because you want me to.” She gets up and brushes off her jeans, adjusting the bag over her shoulder as well. “It’s just that the floor is filthy and I haven’t eaten.”

Bucky follows her lead and unlocks the door for them, gesturing to his couch in the living room as he wanders into the kitchen to fetch her ice cream. “I’ve got vanilla fudge ripple and pistachio,” he announces. “Take your pick.”

“Vanilla fudge,” Wanda answers, but she’s distracted by the books on Bucky’s shelves and the information she just might be able to glean from them; she’s never been in his apartment before, after all. Maybe she’ll gain some insight as to what exactly had gone wrong between them. “Never really thought of you as a person with a sweet tooth.”

“There’s a lot you don’t know about me,” Bucky comments as he begins dishing out the ice cream. Wanda crosses the living room space and sits at the kitchen island, accepting the bowl that he hands her. There’s no trace of anger, no annoyance -- just a simple statement of facts. “I know a lot of it is my fault.”

Wanda pushes her ice cream around and stares down at it like it might tell her the right thing to say. “I mean,” she says slowly. “Kind of.”

Bucky huffs out a short laugh. “You really don’t pull your punches, do you?”

Frowning lightly, Wanda stabs her ice cream and shrugs. “Why should I?”

“I guess you shouldn’t,” he answers after a moment. “But you know, I did have a reason for not calling?”

Wanda immediately blushes hard and stuffs a spoonful of ice cream in her mouth just so she doesn’t have to say anything right away. “I didn’t come in here to be criticized,” she says eventually. “Just so you know.”

Bucky shakes his head. “I’m not here to criticize you. Actually, I’ve been trying to figure out the right way to explain… I wasn’t sure if you would even want to hear it. And every time I’ve come to the bar lately, you aren’t there.”

“Clint let me have a couple weeks off to study for finals… and why wouldn’t I want an explanation?”

He shrugs. “I dunno. Seems to me that you moved on.”

She stares at him, and he meets her gaze. There’s something in the way that he looks at her that tells her he really believes what he’s saying. Eventually, she sighs. “I mean, I guess in a way, I did.” By now her ice cream has melted into a puddle of goo and she drags her spoon through it, swirling it around and watching as the patterns disappear. “I’m not the kind of girl who sits and mopes around at home if a guy doesn’t like her. I can’t afford to be that girl. My brother and I worked too hard to come over to America; we are not going to waste it - I don’t want to waste it.”

“And I don’t want to waste your time, believe me, that was never what I wanted to do.” Bucky’s quick to apologize, in his own way, but Wanda doesn’t really feel like she _needs_ an apology. She wants the explanation he talked about earlier instead. “Go on,” she prompts. “What were you going to say?”

Now that the spotlight is on him, Bucky hesitates. He drops his gaze and shifts in a distinctly uncomfortable way, which kind of makes Wanda feel bad for insisting that he keep going.

“I told you I was in the army, right?” He starts. “Well, I didn’t exactly come back with all my marbles, if you catch my drift.” He indicates his head like she’s going to see real parts missing and Wanda raises her eyebrows. Bucky sighs deeply. “Anyway, I haven’t really been able to do the whole relationship thing since I came home, so asking you out seemed kind of…” He gestures idly with both hands as he searches for the right word. “...Terrifying?”

Wanda can’t help it; she lets out a sudden laugh and covers her mouth because she knows how inappropriate that must have sounded. “I’m sorry, but that’s just crazy to think about,” she huffs.

“I’m not crazy.”

Bucky’s statement comes across so direct and so sure that Wanda immediately wants to apologize to _him_. That word-- ‘Crazy’ clearly hits a nerve.

“I know you’re not,” she says carefully. “I guess there’s no telling what people are afraid of.” Her voice gets softer. “I guess… I really don’t know you that well after all.”

“But you’d like to?” It’s a question that expects no particular answer. Bucky really doesn’t know if she still wants to get to know him or if she even cares enough to continue their friendship. Wanda can tell with a single look at him; he looks more vulnerable than she thinks she’s ever seen him before.

And all of a sudden, the thought of just coming clean is enough to make her cheeks heat up all over again. She likes him enormously, but how is she supposed to just come out and say that?

Then again, why does she have to say anything of the sort? Who says she can’t be the one doing the asking? No one! And Natasha would be so proud of her if she just got herself together and--

“Wan--?”

“Do you want to have dinner with me?”

Her face is _cherry_ red at that point, but Wanda keeps her eyes up and on Bucky looking more determined and fierce than confident even though that’s definitely what she’s going for. She can feel the roots of her hair, that’s how embarrassed she is at the moment. But he’ll say yes, right? He has to say yes because the alternative is just too humiliating for her to actually consider.

Poor Bucky looks like he’s at a loss for words, but he gapes for a moment before nodding rather enthusiastically.

“Yeah, yes-- Yes. Of course.”

“It’s just that I’ve had the worst week and I’m sort of done dancing around the fact that I want to spend time with you, so I figured dinner was probably the best way to go about it without actually falling into bed with you again before we’ve even--”

Bucky’s hand is on her thigh. Wanda looks down at it and takes a deep breath.

“Not-- that I would object to-- the bed thing. Again.”

There’s a smile on his face, but it's nothing like the mischievous smile he sported when they spent their one night together. This smile is one of relief, of hope. It’s soft and he’s looking at her as if she’s the sun and he wants nothing more than to bask in the sunshine. He steps towards her and automatically her arms lift so they encircle his waist as she pulls him even closer to her. She can smell hints of his aftershave and the soap he must have used from his morning shower… He’s practically slotted in between her legs from where she’s sitting on the stool. “You enjoyed the bed thing, huh?”

Her face is still warm, but she knows her cheeks are starting to hurt from the wide grin she’s sporting. Any embarrassment she felt disappeared the moment Bucky moved closer. It feels like maybe they’re finally on the same page and it’s nothing but good now. She tilts her head up as his hands slide into her hair and she can practically feel the electricity in the air between them. “I did enjoy it. I was disappointed when I woke up and you weren’t there.”

He brushes a strand of hair from her face and tucks it behind her ear, his thumb sliding along the apple of her cheek. “I’m sorry. I wanted to stay,” His lips quirk into a half smile. “But you know, considering we’re at _my apartment_ this time, it’s not like I can make a quick exit in the morning.”

“You know what?” Wanda laughs. “I think this time, I would come after you even if you did.”

“Oh really?” Bucky smirks. “I’m that good, huh?”

“No.” She shakes her head. “ _We’re_ that good.”

“You know what, doll? I think I would agree with you on that.”

And then he kisses her.

The tingle she feels from this simple kiss goes through her body all the way down to her toes. As Bucky smoothly deepens it and pulls her closer, she finds herself thinking of a quote from some movie, though she can’t remember which one.

‘ _Nice boys don’t kiss like that_.’

Bucky kisses like he’s dangerous, like he’s someone her parents would never approve of. He kisses like a bad boy, a rogue, a fiend, a rebel! She’s practically scandalized by how aroused she is by the thought, but there’s no one around to judge her for it. No one but Bucky has to know that she’s holding onto his shirt now to make sure he’s close at all times, just so she can have as much bodily contact as possible.

Thankfully, no one else is around to hear the way her breath hitches when he bites down and tugs at her lower lip just enough to hint at the promise of what’s coming next. And she gasps in surprise when he lifts her from where she’s sitting and plops her onto the counter of his kitchen island so that she’s now at eye level with him.

Wanda feels like she can’t catch her breath. Bucky’s lips land on her throat and she leans right into it, letting her head fall back so he can do as he pleases with the delicate skin there. She’ll probably have some telling marks there based on the way his stubble is rubbing up against her, but she can’t bring herself to care. Let everyone see.

His hand slides up her arm and up to her face, his thumb slipping to the apple of her cheek. Anticipation sets her belly on a roller coaster as he moves even closer, coming in between her legs as he dips his head down to the swell of her breasts peeking out from underneath the tank top she wore below her cardigan.  He presses light kisses to her skin and she’s feeling a bit dizzy, but she’s getting that clarity that she’d been hoping for. Whatever this is, be it two friends just enjoying a crazy moment or something more, it feels right. And good, it feels fucking good. _Amazing_.

(They won’t be _just friends,_ though; Wanda is sure of that.)

Pushing her hips forward with intent, she twists slightly until the tips of her fingers are pressing lightly against Bucky’s scalp, drawing a short breath from his lips as he breaks from where he was face first with her chest. Slowly, she brings her hands up to undo the buttons of her cardigan and Bucky watches as his hand at her waist slips just a bit beneath the waistband of her sweatpants, his warm fingertips sliding against the satin underwear she’d put on that morning.

“Is this a good idea, Wanda? I should really take you out for dinner first.”

“I have no idea, but it doesn’t feel like a bad one. Does it to you?”

“Absolutely nothing about kissing you has felt bad, doll.”

Wanda pulls herself forward and slips off the counter so that she’s completely pressed up against him now. He catches her and she lifts herself up on her toes to press a soft kiss against his lips. “Good.”

That’s it. That’s all she says and it must be all he needed to hear because in no time at all she’s lying on his bed with his hand between her legs, his tongue mimicking the movement of his fingers as she pants against his mouth. She could feel the distinctive scrape of Bucky’s stubble against her skin as he makes his way down, latches onto her clit, and sucks hard, making her whimper as sensations flow through her body. She instinctively digs her fingers into Bucky’s hair in the hopes of steadying herself and she’s torn between wanting to slam her eyes shut so she can just focus on the budding pleasure shooting like lightning through her every muscle or watching the very sexy man on top of her go to town between her legs. She’s pinned down, nowhere to go and nothing more to do than ride it out as Bucky’s fingers pump faster inside of her.

Hooking them just right, the pressure and the perfect angle more than what Wanda’s past lovers had ever been able to give her, he brings her the rest of the way with his tongue. She completely forgets that she was ever mad at him to begin with as her muscles tighten, her jaw falls open in a low groan, and her toes curl. Her vision goes white and her body convulses in Bucky’s grip, her hips rolling in time with the motion of his mouth and fingers. It’s all too much and yet not enough and Bucky keeps going until she loses any and all coherent thoughts.

Wanda’s sure that she loses a few minutes somewhere, but the next time she can develop a real thought and open her eyes again, she’s looking into Bucky’s baby blues and taking in his proud smile. She’s also very aware of the distinct hardness nudging up against her thigh.

Unfortunately, she hasn’t quite gotten that blushing habit out of her system and hides her face as Bucky laughs beside her. Oh, but she’s not letting him get away with it this time. She fully intends to see him fall apart for her just like she does for him-- or she’s going to try her hardest and hope. That works too.

She starts off by leaning over for a kiss; it’s easy and familiar and she lets her hand brush against Bucky’s firm chest and down to his stomach. From there, all that’s left is dipping under the waistband of the jockeys he’s wearing and carefully taking him in hand. He groans into her mouth and Wanda feels a surge of success and _power_ , maybe because she literally has him, hot and hard and aroused, right in the palm of her hand.

Sight unseen, she strokes him a few times until their kiss breaks and he lets his head fall back as he rubs his hand over his face. “Oh, no, no, no,” she scolds lightly, her hand stilling. “Move your hand away.”

Bucky whines, but he does as he’s told and Wanda keeps her eyes on him as she tries different things here and there-- she rubs her thumb over the slit at the top and traces under the head, brushes her fingertips over the base near his balls, and decides that she’s had enough of the teasing. He’s naked in no time at all and she resumes stroking him until Bucky’s trying to rock his hips up for more, at which point she abruptly stops.

Lifting his head up, Bucky frowns and starts to ask why, but he shuts his mouth again when Wanda slowly repositions herself and leans down to leave a hesitant kiss right at the head of his cock. She’s never done this before and Wanda’s nervous about it, but how hard could it be, right? She’s smart enough to breathe through her nose and while she’s sure the taste isn’t going to be anything particularly _good_ \--- the noise Bucky makes when she licks a stripe up the underside is well worth it.

Wanda’s never been overly confident of herself, so the surge of self-assurance she feels when Bucky pushes himself up on his elbows to watch her is practically all-encompassing. She relies entirely on her instincts as she wraps her lips around him and begins tentatively finding her way about this particular act. Bucky seems to like it, though. He’s making these soft, deep sounds and she eventually feels his fingers just gently carding through her hair. It’s a silent plea for more, she knows, and she gives him more without making him ask twice.

She gags twice before she finds her footing and lets one hand rest on his hip while the other lightly holds the base of his cock. It’s unlike anything she’s ever done before; Wanda feels in control in a way she never has before, but she also feels--- sexy. It’s a weird feeling she kind of pushes away at first, but eventually kind of relaxes into once she sees Bucky’s free hand gripping the sheets beside him. She’s doing that; it’s impossibly exciting.

He has to beg her to stop, but she doesn’t quite catch it as she’s too enthralled with the sounds he’s making and the rush in knowing that it was _her_ that was pulling the sounds from him.  It’s only when she feels his hand at her wrist does she finally look up from where she’s kneeling on the bed and lets him slip from her mouth. He looks dazed, flushed, and slightly uncoordinated, and that is a sight that is forever imprinted in her mind. She did this to him, reduced him to this mess and it makes her feel incredibly empowered. She _loves_ it.

She slides back on his mattress, anticipation and nerves causing her fingers to tremble slightly as she shrugs off what little clothing she has left and reaches behind her back to unhook her bra. This second time together is no less passionate than their first night together, but everything about _this time_ feels different.

“You are incredible.”

Looking over, she sees Bucky’s hungry stare as he takes in her now completely naked body. She wants to squirm at the intense scrutiny, but he doesn’t give her time. And it turns out to be a good thing because she relishes the praise and finds herself smiling as he reaches out to touch her. He _wants_ her, she reminds herself. Her worth isn’t tied up in what he thinks of her, but she’s proud that he’s so spellbound. It boosts her usually struggling self confidence.

Beyond that, she appreciates that he lets her set the pace-- maybe one of these days, she’ll admit out loud that she kind of wants to find out what happens when he takes control. One day.

For now, she seats herself on his thighs and guides his hands from her hips to her breasts so she can lean into his touch a little more. Bucky’s got the best hands, she’s decided. She wants to feel them everywhere, all the time, as much as she can.

“What are you thinking?”

Wanda blinks and meets Bucky’s curious gaze. “Hm?”

“You look like you’ve got a lot going on in there. All good, I hope.”

She can tell that he’s just a little insecure about the whole thing, probably given their recent history. “I was just thinking about your hands,” she explains, sitting forward a little bit.

“My hands?”

Humming in confirmation, she takes them and laces their fingers together so she can ‘pin’ him down to the bed. Her hair kind of falls into his face and he laughs as he struggles in a very token protest.

“You have great hands,” she tells him as she gets closer. She presses her chest against his and pays no mind to the fact that he’s hard and wet against her belly. “I could probably get off from them alone. We might have try that sometime, just making me come with your hands _all over_...”

Bucky looks like he might have some kind of aneurysm and Wanda smiles in triumph. Yes, it might be because she’s never actually spoken like that before, but that isn’t the point because he flips them over in a move she can’t even quantify and immediately kisses her hard on the mouth like he wants to swallow everything she’s just said. Wanda laughs into his mouth and cards her fingers through his hair as she spreads her legs to bring him closer.

And closer he gets; Bucky barely separates from her at all to put the condom on and presses into her seconds later. This time, she lets him bury his face in her shoulder without worry and arches her back to get more of what she wants. She lets her nails scrape over his shoulders and opens her mouth in soft, pleading moans for more. And when he lifts his head to look at her, she feels like a _goddess_.

When she gets close, he kisses her hard and swallows most of the whimpers he pulls from her. Wanda has _just_ enough energy to urge him onto his back and she rides him hard enough to make the bed wobble, eventually getting her wish as she watches him come with no place to hide.

His head is thrust against his pillow, his back bowing and eyes rolling up to the back of his head. His jaw is slackened as his hips keep pumping fast and deep and moving in time with hers. Watching Bucky amidst his pleasure is something to behold and the sensation of his coming to his completion sets off her own. He hits that spot deep inside and she lets out a groan as she feels her own orgasm begin to crest. She barely feels his hands smooth up her back as her world shatters and she comes around him. It feels like it lasts _hours_ and a warmth like nothing else she’s experienced wraps around her as she starts to come back down, smiling in the security of her position. Bucky’s face is warm, his gaze a little unfocused but undoubtedly relaxed and affectionate as he stares up at her.

There’s a wide grin on her face and she giggles. “Well, this is one way to turn a bad day around.”

Bucky laughs, as he breaks away first and she falls next to him, her head landing on his pillow. Pulling off the condom and tying it quickly, he tosses it into his garbage can just off to the side of the bed. The whole time, he’d kept one leg pressed against hers and just the simple affection of that, it was the perfect thing for him to do. So when he settles back beside her and reaches for her hand, she gives it willingly, flushing slightly as he brings her fingers to his lips and kisses each of her knuckles. They’re both still completely naked, but for once Wanda isn’t shy about letting him see all of her. “Well, I’m glad I could help do something to make things better. Do you want to talk about what upset you earlier?”

She shrugs. “It was just a bunch of things all piling up and I guess I kind of lost it. Too much pressure, you know? I had a final exam this morning that didn’t go so well. I still have two more exams that I don’t feel prepared for… and I haven’t had any time for myself lately, or friends. I haven’t seen Pietro in God knows how long…” She trails off.

“...and me,” Bucky finishes.  She doesn’t reply, but she doesn’t need to. Her silence is enough of an answer. He pulls her closer and she shifts until her head is pillowed on his shoulder. “Are we okay now?”

She tilts her head so their eyes meet, quirking her lips as if she’s actually thinking over his question. “Yeah,” she grins. “There’s something here between us… I want to see where it goes.”

His fingers find the hair at her temple and gently brushes it back away from her face, his eyes now alight with mischievousness as he tugs her even closer with his leg around her knee. Moving her arm between their bodies, she takes a moment to drag her palm from his belly through his happy trail and up to his chest, delightedly getting a good feel of what he had been hiding underneath his clothes earlier. Giving her a gentle push, he rolls her onto her back and slides himself over her body, welcoming the flurry of renewed desires as his hands finds hers. Lowering his head, he nips at her once, twice, and a third time at her lips. “I say we start with what’s happening right here,” he murmurs as he starts to kiss her neck again.

She doesn’t leave for the rest of the night.

 

+++

 

The next time they come into the bar, Bucky and Wanda are holding hands, much to Sam and Clint’s dismay.

Steve simply smiles, delighted with the prospect of seeing his friends so happy.

Natasha takes one look at them and smirks at Clint and Sam. “Looks like each of you owes me twenty bucks.”

And all was well.

 

**Author's Note:**

> If you're gonna leave comments, please let them be nice ones!
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> ****
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> NOT SAFE FOR WORK WARNING!!!! 
> 
> Check out this AMAZING, AMAZING, AMAZING artwork that [SleepyGrimm](http://sleepygrimm.tumblr.com/) made for this story. Nothing could fit the image of what we imagine this fic to be, better than this edit right here. THANK YOU SO MUCH for taking the time to make this! WE LOVE IT!!
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